Materials, product, and other freight loaded onto railcars are typically secured to the railcar using a restraint system. As illustrated in FIGS. 6A–6C and 7, a conventional restraint system 10 includes a number of cables 12 that extend from a series of winches (not shown) secured to the bottom of the railcar 14 to a joist 16 that extends lengthwise along the top of the railcar. Each cable includes a loop 18 formed at one end using a pressure fitted fastener 20, such as a crimp. The loop 18 attaches a short length of chain 22 to the end of the cable 12. The joists 16 include a series of slots 24 that receive and secure the chains 22 attached to the cables 12. Once each chain 22 is positioned within the respective slot 24, the corresponding winch is rotated to tighten the cable 12 thereby securing the freight to the railcar 14.
Once the railcar has been transported to its destination, the restraint system is released by loosening the winches and decoupling the chains from the slots in the joist. It is typically necessary for a worker to climb onto the joist to decouple the chains and, if necessary, dislodge the chains or cable with a hammer or similar tool. However, due to the height of the joist, it can be dangerous for workers to climb onto the joist, as a worker could fall and be injured. To minimize the potential risk associated with decoupling the chains from the joist, it is it has been proposed to construct a tethering system that includes safety lines that extend from a stationary support structure to the workers while they are on top of the joist. Unfortunately, these tethering systems are expensive to build. In addition, because the tethering systems require a stationary support structure to secure the safety lines, it is necessary to move each railcar that is to be unloaded to the tethering system, which is time consuming and increases the expense associated with unloading the railcars.
Thus, there remains a need for a system, apparatus and method for decoupling railcar restraints. The system, apparatus and method should allow the railcar restraints to be efficiently and cost-effectively decoupled from the railcars. In addition, the system, apparatus and method should alleviate the worker-safety issues associated with conventional methods of decoupling railcar restraints.